Flying-machine.



^ F.` W. BALDVHNl v FLYING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED MAR.23,1909.

6 SHEETS-*SHEET 1.

gueux-ISI Patented Dec. 5, 1911. I'

F. W.. BALDWIN. FLYING MAGHINB.

APPLICATION FILED MAB. Z3, 1909.

' Patented Dec. 5, 1911.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

P. w. BALDWIN.

FLYING MACHINE. APPLICATION HL'ED MAR.23,1909.

1,010,842. y Patented Dee. 5, '1911.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 3:

Y ,f 2 j 22, y /Z l F. W; BALDWIN.

FLYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 23, 1909.

11,010,842. Patented 1160.5, 1911.

l I Y MUUHUl /I, i n i 70 O F. Wl. BALDWIN.

FLYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 111111.23, 1909y 1,010,842. Patennanec. 5, 1911.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

` atm@ i machines planes, but more properly designatedv UNirED STATES riiriiia'rv OFFICE.

FRDERIC' W. BALDWIN, 0F TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, ASSIGNOR T0 CHARLES J'.

BELL, TRUSTEE, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA..

FLYING-MACHINE.

` This invention relates 'to-flying machines,.

and more particularly to that class of flying ordinarily known as aeroaerodromes and has for its object. to produce a structure of this -character -which` shallv combinemaximum strength and minimul-nl ivcght; shall-offer a minimum of resistance to theair when in flight; shallbe of great rigidity; and shall readily 'respond tothe various devices employed for steering the same -and restoring the lateral balance or l equilibrium thereof when such has become disturbed and shall be readily caused to rise or fall at the will of the aviator,'and be readily assembled and disassembled.

It has heretofore been proposed to construct machines of this character in which A site sides, of the longitudinal medial line 55 These devices, of whatever form, formainof the machine present different angles of incidence; that is, thelmarginal portion of the supporting surface on one side presents'-l a greaterangle of incidence than does the marginal portion'lon the opposite side of the machine for the. purpose of restoring the lateral balanceo'r equilibrium ofthe machine as a whole. In contradistinction -to such fiexible structures whose marginal por- 40 tions are warped or exed for restoring the lateralbalance of the machine, the structure of lthe present invention is provided wit-h,-v

rigid noii-fiexiblesupporting surfaces. Rel liaiice is placed upon elements forming no part ofthe supporting surface proper for maintaining or restoring the lateral balance of the machine. taining the lat-eral balance of the machine may be'of any 'suitable and effective kind.

Preferably, however, these elements consist-- of lateral balancing rudders located onop-l posite sides ofthe longitudinal medial line of the machine, and preferably near the lat eral extremities of the supportingl surfaces.

Specification of Letterslatent. Application led March 23, 1909,. Serial No. 485,281.

Such elements for main? Patented Dec, 5, 191,1.`

taining or restoring the' lateral balance of the machine, however, form no part of the present invention, which invention relates nioreparticularly to the structure of the supporting surfaces of' the machine and the means for unit-ing such supportingsurfaces Yinto a perfectly rigid and nonflexible structure as a whole.

One of the distinguishing features of the present invention consists of a structure having a plurality of superposed rigid supporting surfaces of a concavo-convex form with their concave sides toward each other, so that their central Yportions are farther apart than their marginal portions, instead,

of the' surfaces being parallel to each other rasin the construction heretofore employed.

-In some instances the 'concavo-convex form may be such that the supporting surfaces will be curved toward each other in fore and supporting surface has'its lower side convex Ain a direction from side to side, while said surfaces are approximately parallelA along the lines where they would be cut by any vertical fore and aft plane. This concavoconvex form presents several advantages.

It lends itself to rigidity of construction of,

the machine as a whole; it has advantages when the machine is struck by. cross gusts of air during flight; and .whenthe marginal' portions of the lower supporting surface are upt-urned, so to speak, it enables these portions to clear obstacles which would otherwise bestruck by said portions when thema-` chine is on the ground, and for the-same real son facilitates landing of the machine at the .struction and combination of parts which will hereinafter be described and then spe,-

cifically pointed out in the claims.

.The inventive idea involved is capable of sions, one of which, for the purpose of illustrating .the invention, is showniin the accomp anying drawings; said drawings, however, are designed merely to facilitate a description of the invention as a whole and are not to be taken aside'ningthe limits of the in- 'receiving a Variety of mechanical expresnel vention, reference b'eing had to the claims suflicc for both.

porting surfaces is shown in Fig. 4. Genervation the structure as a whole; Fig. 2 is ydetail horizontal cross-section through two of the compression members or struts on the line 2-2 of Fig; 1, showing the means for tying the struts together to prevent lateral flexion thereof; Fig. 8 is a horizont-al section through the forward rib of one of the supporting surfaces showing the means of attaching the central vertical struts or compression members thereto; Fig. 4 is a plan view of one of the supporting surfaces; Fig. 5 is a sectional detail showing the manner of constructing the ribs`for the supporting surfaces; Fig. 6 is a vertical section through the superpos-edA supporting surfaces extending from front to rear, and illustrating the curvature of said surfaces ator near the central portion of the machine; Figs. 7 and 8 are details illustrating the gradual decrease in the curvature of the. surfaces toward the lateral marginal portions thereof; Figs.. 9 and l0 are broken details illustrating .the mannerof constructing the framework of the supporting surfaces; Figs'. 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 are detail views illustrating joints preferably employed inthe construction of the machine as a whole.

Referring to the drawings, in which like numeri-als indicate corresponding parts, 1 is the upper and 2 the lower one of a pair of superposed supporting surfaces of concavoconvex form (suitably spaced by vertical struts or compression members) with their concave sides turned toward each other. The general forml of construction of the two supportingsurfaces 1 and 2 is the same, and, therefore, a specific description of one will A plan view of these supally stated, each of the supporting surfaces is provided with a framework 4, preferably rectangular in form, over which is stretched a suitable fabric constituting the supporting, surface proper, which fabric is preferably impervious ,to air, the'front line of the fabric corresponding with the front line 5 of the framework 4, the lateral marginal lines of the fabric, and, therefore, of the supporting surface, corresponds with the lateral marginal lines 6 and 7 of the framework. The rear line, however, of the fabric extends at the central portion a suitable distancebeyond the rear member of the frame 4, and at the central portion of the machine this rearward extension is greater than at any other portion, gradually tapering oft' from the central portion toward the lat-eral marginal lines 6 and 7 where the depth from front to rear of the fabric con stituting the supporting surface is approximately equal to that of the frame 4.

The framework 4 is preferably of wood,

in' cross section, may beef anydesired shape, preferably, however, it is fish-shaped in cross section (Fig. 110i), thus presenting a 4front and rear members of the framework are not made of a single intergral piece, but are made up of sections whose ends abut each other, said ends fitting in lsuitable sockets 9 (see Figs. 9v and 10), the sections at the central portion of the. framework being the vlarger and gradually becoming smaller out A,toward the lateral margins of the frame. The framework is provided with transverse members 10 .extending from the front to the rear memberof the frame at suitable inter-4 vals, which members 10 are preferably formed of some light metallic tubing and are joined to the sockets 9 in any suitable manner. f

For the sake of giving the desired surface shape to the fabric constituting .the-sup.- porting vsurface and also for the purpose of stift'ening the same,'ribs 11 are provided which fit in pockets 12 in the fabric, which pockets extend from the forward line of the supporting surface to the rear thereof and are preferably uniformly spaced. These ribs may be constructed in any' suitable manner and ofany suitable material, but preferably they are made of a laminated structure composed of several layers of wood glued together, as shownin cross-section in Fig. 5. This manner of form-ing the ribs gives a strong, light structure, and also enables the ribs to maintain the curved form hereinafter referred to. These ribs preferably are not iixedly secured to the framework but have their forward ends abutting the forward member of the frame, as clearly shown in F igs; 6, 7 and 8, and their rearward portions extending under but adjacent to the rear member. 4 of the framework. vMoreover, these ribs are not straightbut are of the curved formation shown in Figs. `6, 7 and 8. At the central portion of the mal Ct" chin'e the curve at. thev forward portion of the rib is such asshown in Fig. 6, and from the central portion outward toward the lateral margins of the machine the. curve becomes less and less in the ribs, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8, until the rib next to the latsectional frame having been assembled with the ends of the several sections abutting each other within the sockets 9 and the transverse, members 10 having been put in place and preferably riveted to said sockets, the

the adjustable clips 15, Bi'gs.` 11 and V12, pro-- vision being made forV tightening the wires 14 by any' suitable means, as the nut-s" 16,011 the threaded vrods 17 The two supporting surfaces being thus constructed are superposed .one above the other and are separated, by suitable'verti-r cal struts 18, preferably of the same or sub stantially the same cross-sectional lshape as the frame members 4. When in. position these struts constitute vertical compression members in a truss-likeconstruction, and

, V'have considerable extension in thefore and aft direction, but are very thin in a lateral 'direction to reduce v'head resistance and The strains to. which these thin struts or compression members are sub]ect'A Weight.

kextending upward from the socket 9 on the frame of the-lower supporting surface and the other extending downward yfrom the socket 9 on the .frame 'of the upper supporting surface, 'as will vbe readily understood from 'an inspection of Figs.l6, 11 and 12.- lThev socket members 19 may be secured to the'sockets 9 in any suitable manner, as by the bolt and nut 'construction 20 shown in Fig. 11. p

Near the central portion of the machine the struts 18 are placed somewhat close together, as `shown in Fig. 1, and f'romthis central portion Voutward toward the mar- 'ginal linesof the supporting surfaces they are placed preferably atwider intervals.` `The length of the struts at the middle portion of the machine is approximately that of the depthof the supporting surface at that point from'front to rear, and the lengths of the other struts on either side of the central struts out to the Amarginal lines of the supporting surfaces gradually decrease, the length,lhowever, of any given strut being approximately equal to the depthof the supporting surfaces from front to rear at the point where the strut is placed. There is a forward series of these struts resting on; the forward `line of the framework 4 and a rear series of these struts resting on the rear portion of said framework, each of the struts having its greatest thickness from front .to rear and lts least thiclmess fromv vside to side, and each presenting a front cutting edge so as to offer the minimum of, resist-ance to forward movement through the air. The struts being thus assembled in position with their upper and lower ends entering the sockets 19, the entire structure is bound together' into a rigid whole by means of a series of truss wires. Thus, re-

ferring to Figi, there are truss-wires .21 `extending from the top of cach strut to the bottom of each laterally adjacent strut,"and from the bottom of each strut to the top'- of each laterally .adjacent strut. In addition to this, preferably there are" trusswires extending from the top of eachforward strut to the bottom of each `strut immediately in the rear thereof and from the bottom of each forward strut to the top of. each strut immediately in the rear thereof, as is shown by the truss-wires 22, 22,*Fig. 6. All vof said wires are provided with 'a' suitable means for tightening the same, as, for example, vthe,` screw-threaded rod 23 andfnut `24, as shown in Fig. 11, which rod-and nut lare connected to av suitable clip 25. Any other ,suitable means for tightening the truss-wires andv any other suitable form of socket forjreceiving the ends of the various `members may be employed without departing from the spirit of the present invention, but the'l form shown and described has been found to be eilicient and is the one preferred. Referring to Fig. 1, it willbe seen that the struts 18 thus constitute compressionmembers in a truss construction in which'V the middle struts 18 arev considerably longer than thestruts on each side thereof, and particularly, longer thank the marginaljstruts" 18, and that, therefore, if the central struts are 'ofthe same transverse sectional area as. lthe shorter marginal struts,they would, by reason of their greater length, bend or yield more kreadily under the same bending or compression stra-in. To avoid this it would lio lordinarily become necessary to increase the vcrf'iss-sectional area of the longer struts over thatof'theshorter struts.. lBut-as this increase in cross-sectional area would mean not only increase in weight to the machine but an increased resistance to 'the forward movement of the machine through the air, provision is made bythe presentinvention for maintainingv the cross-sectional area of all of rthestruts substantially the same, and this at the minimum. This is accomplished bynieans of transverse stays or` truss-wires extending from one strut .or compression' ymember to the one next adJacent thereto,

said' truss-wiresfbeing securely fastened to each strut or vcompression member. Preferably there'are twoof these .truss-wires extending between adjacent struts, one 'neai .the topv and one near the bottom, and the `is made in sections so as to adjust the lengths ofthe respective portions thereof between the respective struts, which adjustment is provided for by nieans of the nut and screwthreaded connections 27, illustrated in detail in Fig. 2, in which the screw-threaded rods 28, forming a part of the truss-wires 26, pass through the struts 18 and are fiXedlyv secured to the said struts in the manner clearly illustrated in Fig. 2. When the bowe string truss-wire 26 is thus applied, the portions of the longer struts that would yield to the bending strain are those portions lying between the two truss-wires in'Fig. 1, and, as these wires are parallel it follows that the portions of the struts or compres-v `sion members included between them ,are of equal length, and, therefore, may be of equal cross-sectional area. Vith the two supporting surfaces thus assembled the' front elevation f the machine will be that shown in Fig. 1, thickest, and, therefore, strongest at the center where the greatest strain occurs and gradually tapering, spar-like, from this point of greater strain toward the marginal portions where the least strain occurs.

lhile the several struts 18 of the machine are preferably held in position by their upper and lower ends resting in sockets 19, as illustrated in Figs. 11, 12,13, 14, and 15, the two struts immediately on opposite sides of the longitudinal medial line of the machine are preferably secured xedly to a portion 4 of the framework of the machine, and, as here shown, (Fig. 3) this is accomplished by bolting metal bars 29, 29, to said struts with the screw-threaded ends of the bais `projecting beyond the struts and through the portion 4 of the framework where they are engaged by nuts 30, so that said struts and the framework are tixedly united'. ln this construction the guy-wires 21 are provided with eyes through which extend the projecting portions of the metal bars 29,29, so that the guy-wires, the lstruts and the framework 4 are all secured together by the two bars of metal 29 and the nuts 30, as will be readily understood from an inspection of the drawing.

Y As before described, the members 10 eX- tending from the frontl to the rear members of the framework of each supporting surface do not extend to the rear beyond the framework, and for the purpose of aiford-. ing a suitable support in the middle portion of the machine for the wire which leads through the rear ends of the ribs 1l, bracket arms 31 (Fig. 10,), eXtend rearward from the rear frame member 4,A and these are provided with openings 32 in their rear ends (FigT 10), for receiving the wire which supi by reason of the fact that the ribs 11 would y ot-herwise be 'spaced too far apart, and, therefore, would not afford suitable support for the fabric at this point. As thus constructed, the structure consists of two super- 4posed supporting surfaces rigidly united into a non-flexible structure affording a maximum of supporting surface combined with a minimum of weight and ofresistance to forward movement through the air.

Any desired or suitable means may be employed' for propelling the structure through the air, for maintaining the lateral balancethereof, forsteering the same, or for Alaunching the machine at the commencement of a flight. As the aforementioned means constitute no part of the present invention they need be referred to but briefly.

As here shown the machine is mounted as a whole on a wheeled chassis 34 and is propelled by a screw propeller 35 driven by any suitable motor 36. The machine may be steered by any suitable steering mechanism, as a vertical rudder, not shown, and the lateral balance may be effected by means of` lateral balance rudders 37, 37, one or more of which may be mounted on opposite sides of the fore and aft medial line of the machine, said rudders, however, constituting the lateral balance of the machine, but since these rudders and the means for manipulating the same form no part of the present` invention, it will not be necessary to more` specifically describe the same herein.

Mounted on. a wheeled chassis, as shown herein, the machine is launched directly "1 conveX form of the supporting surface renders the machine less liable to disturb- 'ances from cross currents of air or gusts of' wind, since the depressing effect o f such cross gusts upon the upper side of said upper supporting surface will be largely neu# tralizedby the elevating effect of such gust upon the `underside of the loWer supporting surface, so that this concavo-convex structure not` only lends itself to great rigidity of construction and facilitates the move- 4ment of the machine While on the ground,

but also contributes materially to the steadiness of the machine While in the air;

It is Well-known in this art that support-v Will be perceived, therefore, that in the present structure by superposing the supporting surfaces one above the other With 'their concave lsides toward each other, there is obtained not only fan exceedingly rigid structure but such a rigid structure comblned with the stable qualities of supporting -surfaces which taper or become narrower toward their lateral margins, and that, Withoutdeparting from the principle which requires that. the superposed supporting sur# facesv should be spaced the one above the other at a distance equal to the depth of the supporting surfacesfrom front to rear.

It Will be understood .that the structure thus hereinbefore specifically described may be varied in a great number of its details, and that certain features thereof may be used inthe absence" of others Without de'- parting from the spirit of the invention, and

such changes in details-of construction and' such uses of some of the featuresl in the absenceof others, are intended to be Within the scope of the claims hereto appended.

What I claim is 1. In a flying machine, the combination Vof;awplurality of separate independent concavo-convex supporting surfaces united With `their concave sides toward each other, 4 eachof said supporting surfaces having its- .greatest depth from front to rear at its central portion and having a igradually decreasing depth from front to rear from said central portion to its lateral marginal lines.

2. In a iiying machine, the combination Ofapair of superposed supporting surfaces spaced farthest apart at `their central portion and gradually approaching each other toward their lateral edge portions, a series of spacing struts arranged in a line extending from one lateral edge of the structure to the'ot-her, and a chord or truss-Wire extending in a straight line from the outer strut on one side ofthe structure to the outer strut on the other Side and secured to each of said series of struts,

3. a flying machine, the combination of a plurality of separate independent concavo-convex supporting surfaces having their concave sides toward .a each other, a front and a rear series of struts, each strut extending from one supporting surface to the other, With a front and a rear chord or truss-Wire extending across the concave 5. In a flying machine, the combination of a plurality of separate. independent superposed concavo-convex` supporting surfaces having their concave sides toward each otherv and eachhaving a depth from front to rear gradually decreasing from the center tothe lateral margins, a series of vertical struts separating said supporting surfaces, and, diagonal truss members extending from the top of each strut to the bottoms of the adjacent struts on each side thereof.

6. In a flying machine, the combination.

of a plurality of superposed concavo-convex supporting surfaces .having their concave sides toward each other, a series of vertical struts separating said supporting si rfaces, diagonal truss members extending from the top of each strut to the bottoms ofthe adjacent struts .on each side thereof, and a chord .or truss-Wire extending. acrossthe concave side of each supporting surface in the line of said series of struts and secured to each strut. h l 7. In a flying machine, the combination of a plurality of separate independent concavo-convex supporting surfaces l having their concave sides\ toward eachwother, a front Yand arear series of struts gradually decreasing in length from the center to the lateral margins of saidsurfacesaid struts extending from one supporting surface to the other, a diagonal-truss member extending from the top of eachstrut to the bottom of'each adjacent strut in the series, and a truss member extending from the top of each strut of one series to the bottom of the opposite strut in the other series.

" 8. Ina flying machine, the'combination zof a plurality of concavoLconvex supporting surfaces having their concave sides toward each other, a front and a rearseries of struts,` said strutsextending from vone suptom of the o'ppositestrut in the other series,

and a front and a rear chord 0r truss-Wire,

each extending across the concave side of each supporting surface in the line of` the series of struts and secured to each strut of the series.

v9. In a flying machine, the combination of a plurality of concavo-convex support-ing surfaces having their concave sides toward each other, with a series of struts separating the surfaces, a chord or truss-wire extending across the concave side of each supporting surface andsecured to the struts, and means for adjusting the length of said chord or truss-wire between t-he struts.`

10. In a flying machine, two superposed Supporting surfaces each of said surfaces having frames formed in a series of sections which abut each other, struts .separating said frames Aand abutting the laterally-extending portions thereof, and truss-members uniting the whole into a rigid structure. i

1l. In a flying machine, two superposed supporting surfaces each of said surfaces having frames formed in a series of sections which abut each other, struts separating said supporting surfaces and abutting the laterally-extending portions of the two frames, andi adjustable truss-members uniting the Whole into a rigid structure.

l2. In a flying machine, a pair of separate independent concavo-c0nvex supporting surfaces superposed one above the other with their concave sides toward each other, struts separating the Supporting surfaces and abutting the ramework thereof, and adjustable truss members uniting the Whole into a rigid unyielding struct-ure.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FREDERICK W, BALDWIN.

Witnesses:

y AIJEXANDER GRAHAM BELL, F. A. DOUGLAS MCCURDY. 

